This week I’ve been writing on a regular basis again. I surpassed the 40K marker on Book 2, The Rising. Which means I still have another 40K or more to write. I’ve had to put my foot down at work and force myself to leave at lunch time in order to write. It’s so easy to keep working through my lunch hour but in the end, for me at least, that kind of continuous work burns me out.
I love my job and I feel like I’m beginning to get a handle on it from a technical standpoint. But my head needs a mid-day shot of creativity to keep me going all day long. That’s not to say that working up a useful perl script isn’t creative, but I need a shot of creative writing to keep me going throughout the day. The world is a much brighter place if I get to write during lunch time. Even if all I do is sit there and think about my novel, that little bit of not doing my job, relaxes me and keeps the stress down.
I’ve been averaging about 800 words an hour on my lunch breaks this week. Which is not too shabby. The story is already broken down into chapters and scene beats, so all I have to do is write. If I think about the story on the ride into work, sometimes that helps me get back into the swing of things quicker. I’m going to be getting back to my morning lap swims at the YMCA next week and that will be about 30 minutes of think time on the novel. I don’t count laps when I swim. I just swim until my time is up or until I can just barely get out of the pool unassisted. It’s a great time to let my mind wonder while my body works out. Of course the added benefit of working out is that I lose weight and melt away stress at the same time.
It was great to see my SF writer buddies last night at our monthly get together at Rediscovered Books. Saw Bruce, the owner, always a pleasure. If you live in the Boise area, write some kind of SF and want to hook up with us, we’d love to meet you. We gather on the third Thursday of the month at Rediscovered on 8th street from 6:30-8:00PM.